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Wyden Statement on NAFTA Renegotiation Notice

WASHINGTON - Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., issues the following statement in response to the administration’s notice that it intends to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA):

“The notification sent up today is the first step toward renegotiating NAFTA. On an initial read, the notification is disappointingly vague in many areas with respect to the results the Administration wants to achieve, and consultations with Congress have been rushed. However, a law that I helped write requires the Administration to publish comprehensive summaries of its specific goals for the renegotiation 30 days before it can begin formal negotiations. Over the next 60 days, Ambassador Lighthizer will need to develop negotiating positions that fulfill the expectations of hardworking Americans who have heard the President’s many promises on trade as well as the standards set by Congress in the Trade Promotion Authority law passed two years ago. I hope that he will take the opportunity to engage with Congress and a broad range of stakeholders during that time,” Wyden said.

“I intend to work with the ambassador and stakeholders to see that these negotiations provide maximum opportunities for American workers, manufacturers, farmers and ranchers in Oregon and around the country. I am encouraged Ambassador Lighthizer committed to me that he will look to improve on what was achieved in the TPP agreement in several important areas. I am also heartened that, in particular, he told me he will make it a priority to see to it that a final outcome of the negotiation includes the elimination of Chapter 19 of the NAFTA, which enables Canada and Mexico to challenge the way that the U.S. addresses unfairly traded imports from those countries.”